If Sajad Ganjzadeh and Tareg Hamedi would like to run things back, Karate Combat is ready to assist in making up for their controversial Olympic gold medal match.
The outcome this past weekend in Tokyo caused an uproar after Hamedi’s spectacular head-kick knockout apparently was too spectacular for Olympic karate. It was a perfectly timed counter just as Ganjzadeh moved in with an attack.
Upon further review, the judges ruled that Hamedi struck Ganjzadeh – who fell to the mat unconscious – too hard, which is a violation of the rules that state karatekas aren’t supposed to follow through fully on their strikes. What should’ve been a victory and gold medal for Saudi Arabia’s Hamedi instead turned into a disqualification. As a result, Iran’s Ganjzadeh was awarded gold, with Hamedi receiving silver.
This is where Karate Combat comes in. The full-contact karate promotion is prepared to book a rematch under its rules. President Adam Kovacs shared details of the offer with MMA Junkie.
“In my opinion, Hamedi was robbed of a gold medal, and we are duty-bound to try and make it right, or at least to allow both of them the chance to compete against each other under full-contact rules where they can use their full repertoire,” Kovacs said. “And frankly, I think karate needs this after this weekend.”
He continued, “We’re putting six-figure professional contracts behind this, but we’re also going to put an actual gold medal on the line: the same weight as an Olympic medal (500g) but solid gold. It may not have the status of an Olympic medal, but the cash value will be considerably higher.”
According to Kovacs, Karate Combat already had Ganjzadeh under contract. With assistance from Dominance MMA manager Ali Abdelaziz, the promotion is working on a deal with Hamedi.
For Kovacs, there is a personal aspect to wanting to book this rematch in Karate Combat.
“I love amateur karate, but situations like this are a bad look for the sport. I was an international competitor myself for many years, so I’ve encountered situations like this myself. It’s strange to have a combat sport where participants are penalized for stopping their opponent. You don’t see that in amateur boxing, judo or wrestling.
“I think the ruleset needs to evolve. This is actually one of the reasons we formed a full-contact professional league: If you’re an elite karateka who cannot or will not throw anything less than full power, your home is here.”
Karate Combat chief says Tareg Hamedi ‘robbed of a gold medal’ at Olympics, offers rematch
